Update from Maui! Kahului Harbor!

Just in: News release from Surfrider Maui Chapter! We talked to them by phone earlier, and what a day! In pouring rain, surfers, paddlers, and fishers braved the weather and waved signs reading: Maui Not For Sale; Save the Waves in Kahului Bay; Paddling not Passengers; Save Paddling for Our Keiki.

The Maui event of the Ground Hog Day Statewide Rally for Beach Access took place along Kaahumanu Avenue in the pouring rain in front of Hoaloha Park. It was one of a dozen rallies held statewide today to raise awareness about the public’s eroding access to beaches in Hawaii.

“The statewide rallies were held on Ground Hog Day to signify that we may stick our heads back into the burrow once too often, said Jan Roberson, Surfrider Maui Chapter Chair. “Until the sad day when only a shadow remains of the places our families once paddled, surfed and fished.”

Despite heavy rain showers, the Kahului event drew a flock of fishers, surfers and paddlers, about 25 at a time, who waved signs that read: Maui Not For Sale; Save the Waves in Kahului Bay; Paddling not Passengers; Save Paddling for Our Keiki.

Leona Nomura, proprietor of Kuau Store, and members of her ‘ohana held an inverted Hawai’i State flag to demonstrate disagreement with the state’s 2030 Kahului Harbor Master Plan, which calls for dredging coral, destroying several surf sites, and taking away canoe racing lanes.

“A good plan would not kick the kids out in favor of passenger vessels,” said Roberson. “That’s why the state must prioritize the cultural and recreational needs of the people over visitor industry economics.